Beating the Biological Clock FERTILITY PRESERVATION IS A MEANS OF EXTENDING A WOMAN’S ABILITY TO GET PREGNANT IN THE FUTURE.
The trend worldwide is that more women are choosing to put off childbearing to a later age due to career, personal circumstances or ill-health. The challenge is that this comes at a cost because at the same time, fertility is dropping and there is increased risk of chromosome abnormality, which can increase the risk of miscarriage or other complications. At birth, a female ovary contains about one million oocytes (eggs). Females are not capable of making new eggs, and in fact, there is a continuous decline in the total number of eggs each month. By the time a girl enters puberty, only about 25 percent of her lifetime total egg pool remains, around 300,000. A woman’s most fertile years are her 20s and early 30s, when the ovaries still contain a large number of healthy eggs. For the 10 to 15 years before menopause, even if you have regular monthly periods, the ovarian function and egg quality deteriorates. This is especially so for women in their 40s. Women can experience these challenges if they try to conceive in their late 30s and 40s. More and more women are seeking options to preserve their fertility for the future. Freezing eggs or embryos is helping women conceive in later life. Egg freezing allows you to store your unfertilised eggs, to preserve their quality for use in the future. Frozen eggs may be stored for many years. When you are ready to use your eggs, they are thawed, and then fertilised with sperm – either from your partner or a donor. A healthy fertilised egg can develop into an embryo, which will then be transferred back to your uterus, with a subsequent chance of pregnancy.
For example, a 40-year-old woman trying to get pregnant using eggs she froze at 30-years-old, will have approximately the same chance of pregnancy as a 30-year-old. The process to obtain eggs for freezing involves undergoing hormonal stimulation for 10 to 12 days, enabling a group of eggs (usually 10 to 15) to mature. There are a variety of stimulation techniques for this, and your Fertility Specialist will work with you to develop the best treatment for your individual circumstances. The stimulation typically involves daily injections of hormones using a tiny needle under the skin, which are very easy to administer. During this time, you will also need regular blood tests and ultrasound scans to monitor hormone levels and egg development. The eggs are removed from the ovaries using an ultrasound guided probe. Attached to the ultrasound probe is a fine needle that passes through the vaginal wall into the ovary and draws the fluid (and egg) from the ovary. You can go home about one hour after the procedure and are advised to rest quietly for the rest of the day. The eggs undergo freezing, or cryopreservation, in the IVF laboratory, using the latest scientific technology. This process known as vitrification results in ultra rapid freezing of the egg to prevent ice crystals in the cells from causing cell damage and protect its cellular structure, followed by storage in freezing tanks of liquid nitrogen. Eggs may be stored for many years. 44 slim magazine winter 2021
DR ANDREW CARY MBBS (QLD) FRANZCOG
Specialities: Fertility, Obstetrics, Gynaecology Dr Andrew Cary has 24 years’ experience in assisting women with pregnancy, gynaecology and IVF issues. Get in touch for further information or to book an appointment.
Tel: 07 5597 3770 qfg.com.au and drcary.com.au
The younger the woman is when her eggs are frozen, the better the chance of the thawed eggs resulting in a pregnancy. The cost of egg freezing varies depending on your individual circumstances. If there are medical reasons for freezing eggs, Medicare will provide a rebate on the associated costs. Once eggs are frozen, ongoing storage fees will also apply every 6 months.
